Improvement in bustles



PATENT OFFIcE;

GEORGE P. BRYANT, or BOSTON, MASSACHUSETTS.

IMPROVEMENT m BUsTLEs.

Specification forming part of Letters Patent No. 12,S3, dated July 30,1872.

v To allpersons to whom these presents may come:

' Be it known that I, GEORGE B. BRYANT, of Boston, in the county ofSuflolk and State of Massachusetts, have invented anew and usefulImprovement in Bustles; and do hereby declare the same to be fullydescribed in; the following specification and represented in theaccompanying drawing, of which.-

Figure 1 is a top view, Fig. 2 a side elevation, and Fig. 3 a bottomview of a bustle provided with my invention.

The nature of my invention consists in the combination of asupporting-apron and lacingstrings, arranged as hereinafter explained,with a bustle, constructed substantially as represented, the objects ofthe apron and lacingstrin gsbein g to afl'ord a proper bearing orsupportfor the bustle ,upon the back of a woman, and to efl'ect theproper curving of the bustle bylongitudinal and lateral draft upon it.When a bustle is furnished with crowning straps or strings arranged onlyacross the middle of it from the back of its waistband to the crown ofthe lowermost rib, such affords a poor support for the bustle, andbesides can be used only to crown it in one direction-win, lengthwise;but my improvement enables the bustleto be drawn in or let out bothlengthwise and widthwise at once.

In the drawing, A denotes an ordinary bustle, constructed of a series ofcurved ribs or bows, to a a a, arrangedin bonnet or hood form, andconnected by bands b b b and end pocketpieces 0 a, and provided withawaist belt or band, (1, all as bustles are usually constructed There isconnected to the waistband or part. of the bustle the apron B, which maybe made of net-work cloth or other suitable material. It has a series ofeyelets arranged in it, close to and around its outer edge, as shown ate e e c, and furthermore it has other eyelets arranged in it, asrepresented at f f f f f f. When the apron is made of net-work or wovenwith meshes there will be no necessity for eyelets in it. Twolacingstrings, O 0, attached to the bustle near the corners of theapron, are laced around the bows of the bustle and through the eyeletsof the apron and two eyelets, g g, at the middle of the waistband, allbeing as shown in the drawing.

By drawing the two Iacingstrings, and tying them together, the bustlemay be bowed both lengthwise and widthwise to great advantage. I make noclaim to a bustle provided with straps or strings extending across it inone direction only, and to effect the b owing of the bustle in suchdirection.

What I claim is-- The combination of the bustle A, the apron B, and thelacing or lacings 0 applied to the bustle and apron, all being arrangedin manner and to operate as specified.

GEO, P. BRYANT.

Witnesses:

B. H. EDDY, J. R. Snow.

